Did you set any goals or resolutions for the year?

Many people set goals or resolutions, but, according to Dr. Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire, only a small percentage of us go on to achieve them.

Richard tracked the lives of over 700 people as they attempted to achieve their New Year’s resolutions. He found that only 12% of participants achieved their resolutions.

To help you to meet your goals, Richard has identified effective ways of achieving long-lasting change. He did this by comparing the techniques used by successful and unsuccessful participants.

The following were found to help you to meet your goal(s)…

1) Break your goal into a series of steps, focusing on creating sub-goals that are concrete, measurable, and time-based. For example, instead of thinking ‘I want to find a new job’ focus on creating smaller, measurable goals such as making contact with twenty recruiters per week.

2) Regularly remind yourself of the benefits associated with achieving your goals by creating a checklist of how life would be better once you obtain your aim. For example, if you want to make a career move now, make a list of the benefits getting a new position and place it somewhere prominent in your home. My good friend Alex Florschutz suggests that you make a collage about your goal, this can help you realise it and stay focused, have a reminder of what you want to achieve. http://theartofbirth.co.uk/truth-new-years-resolution-nobody-tells/

3) Expect to revert to your old habits from time to time. Treat any failure as a temporary set-back rather than a reason to give up altogether. Remember that everyone messes up from time to time. Don’t blame yourself if you falter, or allow the experience to make you give up.

4) Make only one resolution as your chances of success are greater when you channel energy into changing just one aspect of your behaviour.

Then, you should take action on the goal as soon as possible.

Getting started is often the toughest part of accomplishing anything. The hardest part of exercising is actually getting to the gym – when you’re there it’s easy for you to exercise.

Once you start something you create momentum. It is this that helps to drive you forward to complete your goal.

So once you have a goal in mind, do something towards it. Even if it is something small that you do, you’ve started and you’ve got momentum.

(thanks to Robert Oldhams at CV Trumpet for some of this article)

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